Ravencry

Raven's Mark, Book 2

By: Ed McDonald

Narrated by: Colin Mace

Length: 13 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's Summary

In the second gritty installment of the Raven's Mark series, a bounty hunter faces down the darkest evil.

Ryhalt Galharrow is a blackwing - a bounty hunter who seeks out and turns over any man, woman, or child who has been compromised by the immortals known as the Deep Kings. Four years have passed since he helped drive the Deep Kings back across the Misery. But new and darker forces are rising against the republic....

©2018 Ed McDonald (P)2018 Penguin Audio

Fantastic

As grimdark as it gets. I had been eagerly awaiting this book and it did not disappoint. The story is excellent and the reader really accentuates the grimdark nature of the story. If you like the first story you’ll be pleased with the sequel.

Such a sad book

I can't say I loved it - a few times I thought about not finishing it. But I really wanted to know how it ended. If you've read the first book in the series, read this one too. Just keep the tissues near by.

The perfect grimdark series

The second installment of Ryhalt Galharrow's story of defending Valengrad from another evil entity takes him and his companions back into the Misery. Something has been stolen from Crowfoot and Galharrow has orders to get it back, as the city has a segment of worshipers waiting for the Bright Lady to manifest and save them all. Nothing is simple though, with Galharrow dismissing the identity of the Bright Lady, finds himself taking orders from a raven, and now fears for the life of one of his best friend's. This is one of those stories that you just have to read or listen to, to fully appreciate the scope of how grim lives can be, but friendship and love can still make it all worth while, when life is at it's bleakest. The characters are vibrant in their believability in this fantastical world. All are flawed, but you want to hear their stories. I absolutely loved a little orphaned girl named Amaira, that made her way into Ryhalt's heart, as much as he didn't want her to. Ryhalt spends much of the story in denial of feeling anything, then his trek through the Misery becomes as much of an enlightening experience, as well as a treacherous one. The Misery is a story in itself, having to be one of the most fascinating places I've visited with it's unique creatures, never failing to amaze.
Looking forward to starting the last installment and of course, I won't pass up listening to Colin Mace. He captures the personalities perfectly and Galharrow himself, could have no other voice.

Horribly tedious and pathetic.

Wow! This was a struggle to get through with no reward. Save your money or credit. Ravencry destroyers whatever was salvageable from Blackwing. There is maybe thirty minutes to an hour of this audio book that is entertaining and the rest is worthless garbage. If you enjoy jamming broken glass into your eyes and ears while the hero of the story constantly stumbles from stupid scene after stupid scene constantly feeling sorry for himself and wallowing in self pity by all means suck up this tripe. Everyone else should pass on this total waste of time.

A rare and excellent story

Narrated amazingly, and more impactful than the first, a great story. A harsh and unforgiving story resonating with another old veteran.

Bleak and dull.

Everyone is missing substantial parts of their face. I recall from the first book that there was some goal or common purpose. Here it’s just bleak descriptions of missing body parts and other boring grim dark tropes.

Unique Setting, Extraordinary Narration

This 2nd book in the series drags a bit in the middle, but it's a grim tale worth seeing through. Made better still by its unique setting, determined characters and excellent narration.

Dark and wonderful!

I have such a good time with this book! After reading and enjoying Blackwing, I wanted to continue with the series before letting too much time elapse. After listening to a sample of the audiobook, I decided to go that route. I was enjoying myself but somewhere around the midpoint of the book, I admitted to myself that some of the details of the story were getting past me. I continued with the book but decided that I was going to have to listen to it a second time because I didn't want to miss anything. So I did. Yes, I started this audiobook over again at the beginning just as soon as I finished it. I did pick up on quite a few things that I missed the first time around on my second listen and found that I really enjoyed the story a whole lot more so it was a good decision. I guess you could say that I liked this book since I liked it enough to listen to it twice!

This book is set about 4 years after the events of the first book. Ryhalt is still the leader of Blackwing and is working with his group. He knows things that would be dangerous if others found out but he knows how to keep things to himself when necessary. This book jumps right into the action with Ryhalt leaving a meeting in a rather unconventional manner just to stay alive. When he sees a man that he is sure he recently killed, he knows that something is going on. Plus there is the small matter of an important and powerful item that goes missing. I knew that Ryhalt had his work cut out for him.

This book was just as dark and bloody as I expected it to be after reading the previous installment. The story is set in a cruel world where things can and often do go wrong. Things are rather desperate at times and I was more than a little worried about the safety of all of the key characters. I loved the way that the reader has a chance to really get to know these characters better in this installment. A lot of the book is centered solely on Ryhalt and I felt that his actions showed exactly what kind of man he is. I thought that a couple of other characters important in his life were wonderfully developed so that they had a bigger impact on the overall story.

Colin Mace was the perfect narrator for this book. If you had asked me what Ryhalt Garharrow sounded like after reading the first book, I couldn't have come up with anything that fits better than this narrator. I think that he really was able to bring this story to life. His reading added excitement, desperation, hope, and uncertainty of the story when appropriate. I believe that his narration added to my overall enjoyment of the story and I plan to listen to more of his work.

I would highly recommend this story to others. It is a gritty fantasy that is well crafted and entertaining. I cannot wait to read the next book in the series!

I received a digital review copy of this book from Berkley Publishing Group via NetGalley and I purchased a copy of the audiobook.

As good as the first!

Ed McDonald is a fantastic grimdark author, and Ravencry proves he can repeat the magic from Blackwing. Colin Mace also did a stellar performance as the audio book narrator. Great stuff. Looking forward to Book 3!